Writer Jeff Pope warns that violence against women has reached breaking point, blames police inertia

On Thursday, veteran screenwriter Jeff Pope, whose recent ITV series *Believe Me* dramatizes the testimony of survivors of the self‑styled ‘black‑cab rapist’ John Worboys, publicly declared that violence against women in the United Kingdom has arrived at a breaking point and that the criminal justice system, particularly police procedures handling sexual assault, must undergo fundamental reform.

Pope’s criticism, which he framed as a response to what he described as the police’s apparent unwillingness to adapt their investigative approaches despite a growing body of survivor testimony, was delivered without reference to any specific recent case beyond the dramatized accounts, thereby positioning his commentary as a broader indictment of institutional inertia.

The drama itself, scheduled for broadcast later this year, follows several women who, after enduring years of intimidation and procedural delays, finally choose to speak out in a televised courtroom setting, a narrative choice that Pope argues reflects the real‑world frustration of victims who have repeatedly encountered gaps between legal rhetoric and practical protection.

In addition to *Believe Me*, Pope is also developing a series concerning the 2021 murder of Sarah Everard, a project that he says aims to highlight systemic failures within law enforcement, thereby reinforcing his view that artistic interventions are necessary precisely because conventional policy mechanisms appear unable or unwilling to generate substantive change.

Observers note that Pope’s dual focus on two high‑profile cases, both of which have provoked public inquiries and sustained media scrutiny, underscores a pattern in which cultural producers are compelled to assume the role of watchdogs precisely at moments when formal institutions repeatedly demonstrate a reluctance to confront entrenched misogynistic practices, a circumstance that inevitably raises questions about the allocation of accountability between storytellers and the state.

Published: April 30, 2026